Contents

There are currently four different competitions on the pyramid – the 1st tier level EuroLeague, the 2nd tier level EuroCup, FIBA's self-anointed 2nd-tier level (which is disputed by Euroleague Basketball, which considers it as the 3rd-tier level) Champions League, and the 4th tier level FIBA Europe Cup. The EuroLeague and EuroCup competitions are organized by Euroleague Basketball, and the Champions League and FIBA Europe Cup competitions are organized by FIBA Europe.[1][2]

1.
Basketball
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Basketball is a non-contact team sport played on a rectangular court by two teams of five players each. The objective is to shoot a ball through a hoop 18 inches in diameter and 10 feet high that is mounted to a backboard at each end of the court. The game was invented in 1891 by Dr. James Naismith, a team can score a field goal by shooting the ball through the basket being defended by the opposition team during regular play. A field goal scores three points for the team if the player shoots from behind the three-point line. A team can also score via free throws, which are worth one point, the team with the most points at the end of the game wins, but additional time is mandated when the score is tied at the end of regulation. The ball can be advanced on the court by passing it to a teammate and it is a violation to lift, or drag, ones pivot foot without dribbling the ball, to carry it, or to hold the ball with both hands then resume dribbling. The game has many techniques for displaying skill—ball-handling, shooting, passing, dribbling, dunking, shot-blocking. The point guard directs the on court action of the team, implementing the coachs game plan, Basketball is one of the worlds most popular and widely viewed sports. Outside North America, the top clubs from national leagues qualify to continental championships such as the Euroleague, the FIBA Basketball World Cup attracts the top national teams from around the world. Each continent hosts regional competitions for teams, like EuroBasket. The FIBA Womens Basketball World Cup features the top womens basketball teams from continental championships. The main North American league is the WNBA, whereas the EuroLeague Women has been dominated by teams from the Russian Womens Basketball Premier League, in early December 1891, Canadian Dr. He sought a vigorous indoor game to keep his students occupied, after rejecting other ideas as either too rough or poorly suited to walled-in gymnasiums, he wrote the basic rules and nailed a peach basket onto a 10-foot elevated track. Basketball was originally played with a soccer ball and these laces could cause bounce passes and dribbling to be unpredictable. Eventually a lace-free ball construction method was invented, and this change to the game was endorsed by Naismith, dribbling was not part of the original game except for the bounce pass to teammates. Passing the ball was the means of ball movement. Dribbling was eventually introduced but limited by the shape of early balls. Dribbling only became a part of the game around the 1950s

2.
Europe
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Europe is a continent that comprises the westernmost part of Eurasia. Europe is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, yet the non-oceanic borders of Europe—a concept dating back to classical antiquity—are arbitrary. Europe covers about 10,180,000 square kilometres, or 2% of the Earths surface, politically, Europe is divided into about fifty sovereign states of which the Russian Federation is the largest and most populous, spanning 39% of the continent and comprising 15% of its population. Europe had a population of about 740 million as of 2015. Further from the sea, seasonal differences are more noticeable than close to the coast, Europe, in particular ancient Greece, was the birthplace of Western civilization. The fall of the Western Roman Empire, during the period, marked the end of ancient history. Renaissance humanism, exploration, art, and science led to the modern era, from the Age of Discovery onwards, Europe played a predominant role in global affairs. Between the 16th and 20th centuries, European powers controlled at times the Americas, most of Africa, Oceania. The Industrial Revolution, which began in Great Britain at the end of the 18th century, gave rise to economic, cultural, and social change in Western Europe. During the Cold War, Europe was divided along the Iron Curtain between NATO in the west and the Warsaw Pact in the east, until the revolutions of 1989 and fall of the Berlin Wall. In 1955, the Council of Europe was formed following a speech by Sir Winston Churchill and it includes all states except for Belarus, Kazakhstan and Vatican City. Further European integration by some states led to the formation of the European Union, the EU originated in Western Europe but has been expanding eastward since the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991. The European Anthem is Ode to Joy and states celebrate peace, in classical Greek mythology, Europa is the name of either a Phoenician princess or of a queen of Crete. The name contains the elements εὐρύς, wide, broad and ὤψ eye, broad has been an epithet of Earth herself in the reconstructed Proto-Indo-European religion and the poetry devoted to it. For the second part also the divine attributes of grey-eyed Athena or ox-eyed Hera. The same naming motive according to cartographic convention appears in Greek Ανατολή, Martin Litchfield West stated that phonologically, the match between Europas name and any form of the Semitic word is very poor. Next to these there is also a Proto-Indo-European root *h1regʷos, meaning darkness. Most major world languages use words derived from Eurṓpē or Europa to refer to the continent, in some Turkic languages the originally Persian name Frangistan is used casually in referring to much of Europe, besides official names such as Avrupa or Evropa

3.
Hierarchy
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A hierarchy is an arrangement of items in which the items are represented as being above, below, or at the same level as one another. A hierarchy can link entities either directly or indirectly, and either vertically or diagonally, indirect hierarchical links can extend vertically upwards or downwards via multiple links in the same direction, following a path. This is akin to two co-workers or colleagues, each reports to a superior, but they have the same relative amount of authority. Organizational forms exist that are alternative and complementary to hierarchy. A hierarchy is a system or organization in which people or groups are ranked one above the other according to status or authority, Hierarchies have their own special vocabulary. Most hierarchies use a more specific vocabulary pertaining to their subject, for example, with data structures, objects are known as nodes, superiors are called parents and subordinates are called children. In a business setting, a superior is a supervisor/boss and a peer is a colleague, degree of branching refers to the number of direct subordinates or children an object has a node has). Hierarchies can be categorized based on the degree, the highest degree present in the system as a whole. Categorization in this way yields two broad classes, linear and branching, in a linear hierarchy, the maximum degree is 1. In other words, all of the objects can be visualized in a lineup, note that this is referring to the objects and not the levels, every hierarchy has this property with respect to levels, but normally each level can have an infinite number of objects. An example of a hierarchy is the hierarchy of life. In a branching hierarchy, one or more objects has a degree of 2 or more, for many people, the word hierarchy automatically evokes an image of a branching hierarchy. Branching hierarchies are present within numerous systems, including organizations and classification schemes, the broad category of branching hierarchies can be further subdivided based on the degree. A flat hierarchy is a hierarchy in which the maximum degree approaches infinity. Most often, systems intuitively regarded as hierarchical have at most a moderate span, therefore, a flat hierarchy is often not viewed as a hierarchy at all. For example, diamonds and graphite are flat hierarchies of numerous carbon atoms which can be decomposed into subatomic particles. An overlapping hierarchy is a hierarchy in which at least one object has two parent objects. Pseudo-Dionysius used the related Greek word both in reference to the hierarchy and the ecclesiastical hierarchy

4.
Promotion and relegation
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In sports leagues, promotion and relegation is a process where teams are transferred between two divisions based on their performance for the completed season. In some leagues, playoffs or qualifying rounds are used to determine rankings. This process can continue through several levels of divisions, with teams being exchanged between levels 1 and 2, levels 2 and 3, levels 3 and 4, the number of teams exchanged between the divisions is almost always identical. Such variations will almost inevitably cause an effect through the lower divisions. Even in the absence of such circumstances, the pyramid-like nature of most European football league systems can still create knock-on effects at the regional level. The system is said to be the characteristic of the European form of professional sports league organization. Promotion and relegation have the effect of allowing the maintenance of a hierarchy of leagues and divisions and they also maintain the importance of games played by many low-ranked teams near the end of the season, which may be at risk of relegation. In contrast, a low-ranked US or Canadian teams final games serve little purpose, although not intrinsic to the system, problems can occur due to the differing monetary payouts and revenue-generating potential that different divisions provide to their clubs. For example, financial hardship has sometimes occurred in leagues where clubs do not reduce their wage bill once relegated, some leagues offer parachute payments to its relegated teams for the following year. The payouts are higher than the money received by some non-relegated teams and are designed to soften the financial hit that clubs take whilst dropping out of the Premier League. However, in many cases these parachute payments just serve to inflate the costs of competing for promotion among the lower division clubs as newly relegated teams retain a financial advantage. If these are not satisfied, a team may be promoted in their place. While the primary purpose of the system is to maintain competitive balance. On several occasions, the Italian Football Federation has relegated clubs found to have involved in match-fixing. This occurred most recently in 2006, when the initial champions Juventus were relegated to Serie B. An exception is the proposed UEFA Nations League, which will feature promotion and relegation across four levels, in tennis, the Davis Cup has promotion and relegation where each group uses a knockout tournament format in which first-round losers play off to avoid relegation. In the United States, Canada, and Australia, teams are not promoted or relegated. The USL set up two leagues, now known as the United Soccer League and the Premier Development League, although the system is now in place, it is not compulsory and is rarely used

5.
EuroLeague
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Introduced in 2000, the competition replaced the FIBA EuroLeague, which had been run by FIBA since 1958. For Euroleague Basketball records purposes, the FIBA European Champions Cup and EuroLeague are considered to be the same competition, with the change of name being simply a re-branding. EuroLeague is one of the most popular professional sports leagues in the world, with an average attendance of 8,184. The EuroLeague title has been won by 20 different clubs,13 of which have won the more than once. The FIBA European Champions Cup was originally established by FIBA and it operated under its umbrella from 1958 until the summer of 2000 and that was when Euroleague Basketball was created. FIBA had never trademarked the EuroLeague name, even though it had used that name for the competition since 1996. Euroleague Basketball simply appropriated the name, and since FIBA had no recourse to do anything about it, it was forced to find a new name for its championship series. Thus, the following 2000–2001 season started with 2 separate top European professional club competitions, the FIBA SuproLeague. The rift in European professional club basketball initially showed no signs of letting up, in May 2001, Europe had two continental champions, Maccabi of the FIBA SuproLeague and Kinder Bologna of the Euroleague. The leaders of both organizations realized the need to come up with a unified competition, although only a year old, Euroleague Basketball negotiated from a position of strength and dictated proceedings. FIBA essentially had no choice but to agree to Euroleague Basketballs terms, as a result, European club competition was fully integrated under Euroleague Basketballs umbrella and teams that competed in the FIBA SuproLeague during the 2000–01 season joined it as well. In essence, the authority in European professional basketball was divided over club-country lines, FIBA stayed in charge of national team competitions, while Euroleague Basketball took over the European professional club competitions. From that point on, FIBAs Korać Cup and Saporta Cup competitions lasted only one season before folding. In November 2015, Euroleague Basketball and IMG agreed on 10-year joint venture, both Euroleague Basketball and IMG will manage the commercial operation, and the management of all global rights covering both media and marketing. The deal was worth €630 million euros guaranteed, with projected revenues reaching €900 million euros, FIBA era, FIBA European Champions Cup, FIBA European League, FIBA EuroLeague, FIBA SuproLeague, Euroleague Basketball era, Euroleague. *There were two separate competitions during the 2000–01 season, the SuproLeague, which was organized by FIBA, and the Euroleague, which was organized by Euroleague Basketball. On 26 July 2010, Turkish Airlines and Euroleague Basketball announced a €15 million strategic agreement to sponsor the top European basketball competition across the globe, according to the agreement, starting with the 2010–11 season, the top European competition would be named Turkish Airlines Euroleague Basketball. Similarly, the EuroLeague Final Four would be named the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four and this title partnership was set to run for five seasons, with the option of extending it to an additional five

6.
EuroCup Basketball
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Clubs qualify for the competition based on their performance in their domestic leagues competitions. For this purpose, the clubs from participating in the ABA League qualify for the competition based on their performance in the ABA League. Previously called the ULEB Cup, the competition has been known as EuroCup Basketball since the 2008–09 season, for Euroleague Basketball records purposes, the ULEB Cup and EuroCup Basketball are considered the same competition, with the change of name being simply a re-branding. The winner of EuroCup Basketball qualifies for the edition of the European-wide top-tier level EuroLeague. The winner enters the season, if the berth reserved for the EuroLeague title holders is not used. The title has been won by 11 different clubs,3 of which have won the more than once. According to the agreement, starting with the 2016–17 season, the 2nd-tier level European competition would be named 7DAYS EuroCup and this title partnership was set to run for three seasons. Starting with the 2016–17 season, the EuroCups first phase is the Regular Season, each team plays two games against every other team in its group. At the end of the Regular Season, the field is cut from 24 to 16, the next phase, known as the Top 16, then begin, featuring the 16 survivors of the Regular Season, enter into four-team groups. As in the Regular Season, each Top 16 group is contest in a double round-robin format, the third phase, the Playoffs, the group winners and runners-up advanced. The series are best-of-three and the winners of each advance to next round persistently until the Finals. Home advantage in the series goes to the best place team in the Top 16, the Finals features the two remaining series winners in a best-of-three series with home advantage in the series to the best place team in the Top 16. Historically, the competition began with a phase in which the starting field was reduced to 16 teams. The survivors then advanced to a knockout phase, in the inaugural 2002–03 season, the knockout phase consisted entirely of two-legged ties. In the following 2003–04 season, the became a one-off game. In the 2007–08 season, the phase, now called the Regular Season, was only used to reduce the field to 32 teams. The survivors were paired into two-legged knockout ties, with the advancing to another set of two-legged ties. The survivors then entered the first-ever Final Eight phase in the competitions history, the following 2008–09 season, was the first in which preliminary rounds were conducted

7.
FIBA Europe Cup
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FIBA Europe Cup is the 4th tier level international mens professional club basketball competition in Europe. On June 30,2015, FIBA announced it would start a new league to compete with Euroleague Basketballs EuroCup, the new competition, that replaced EuroChallenge, was supposed to be open for up to 100 teams to enter. The first FIBA Europe Cup game was played on October 21,2015, in the Regular season, all teams are divided in groups of four. The best two of each group, along with the best third-placed teams, advance to the Round of 32. In the Round of 32 all teams will once again play in groups of four, starting from the Round of 16 a knock-out tournament is played, each year, the best player of the Final Four wins the FIBA Europe Cup Final Four MVP Award. Quantez Robertson was the first winner in 2016, source, FIBA Europe Cup Basketball Champions League EuroLeague EuroCup Basketball FIBA Europe official website FIBA Europe Cup official website

8.
Euroleague Basketball
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It has been organizing the EuroLeague competition since the year 2000, beginning with the Euroleague 2000–01 season. Since 2002, it has organized the EuroLeague Final Four. It also oversees the European national basketball league rankings, and the Euroleague Basketball Next Generation Tournament and it is headquartered in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. Euroleague Commercial Assets S. A. is the limited liability company, acting pursuant to Luxembourg law, with registered office in rue Beaumont 17, L-1219 Luxembourg. It is governed by the statutes and the resolutions of the bodies, the owners of which are the clubs participating in the EuroLeague. In addition, it ensures the coordination of the clubs and has the authority to make decisions, the Chief Executive Officer, who will act as chairman of the Shareholders Executive Board. The chairman is only empowered to vote in the event of equality of votes, Euroleague Properties S. A. EP has designated the company Euroleague Entertainment & Services, S. L. U. Controlled by ECA, as the responsible for the management and administrative organisation of the EuroLeague. This company must adhere to the EuroLeague Regulations and any future modifications, amendments or derogations whenever the governing bodies approve them

9.
FIBA EuroCup Challenge
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The FIBA EuroCup Challenge was the 4th tier level transnational professional club basketball competition in Europe. It was run and organized by FIBA Europe, the league was founded in 2002 and ceased in 2007. Each seasons finalists were promoted to the seasons more prestigious 3rd tier level competition. The competition was played during the 2002–03 to 2006–07 seasons and it was variously known as the FIBA Europe Champions Cup, the FIBA Europe Cup, and the FIBA EuroCup Challenge

10.
FIBA EuroChallenge
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FIBA EuroChallenge was the 3rd tier level transnational mens professional club basketball competition in Europe. It was organized and run by FIBA Europe, in 2015, FIBA dissolved the EuroChallenge to start a new second-tier competition, the FIBA Europe Cup, to compete with the EuroCup. Each seasons two EuroChallenge finalists were promoted to the next seasons 2nd tier level, the EuroCup competition, in 2015, FIBA Europe dissolved the EuroChallenge, to start a new third-tier competition, in an attempt to compete with EuroCup Basketball

11.
Spanish basketball league system
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The Spanish basketball league system, or Spanish basketball league pyramid is a series of interconnected competitions for professional basketball clubs in Spain. The system has a format with a promotion and demotion system between competitions at different levels. Liga ACB is organized by the Asociación de Clubs de Baloncesto, LEB leagues and Liga EBA are organized by the Spanish Basketball Federation while the lower tiers are organized by the Regional Federations. Liga Femenina de Baloncesto, organized by the Spanish Basketball Federation, Liga Femenina 2, composed by 28 teams divided into two groups and also organized by the Spanish Basketball Federation. Primera División Femenina, where teams are divided into several inter-Regional groups and this competition is co-organized by the Regional Federations

12.
Asian Football Confederation
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The Asian Football Confederation is the governing body of association football in Asia and Australia. Three other states located along the fringe of Asia – Cyprus, Armenia. Hong Kong and Macau, although not independent countries, are members of the AFC. One of FIFAs six continental confederations, the AFC was formed officially on 8 May 1954 in Manila, Philippines, the main headquarters is located in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The current president is Sheikh Salman Bin Ibrahim Al-Khalifa of Bahrain, the Asian Football Confederation was founded on 8 May 1954. Afghanistan, Burma, Republic of China, Hong Kong, India, Israel, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, the Asian Ladies Football Confederation is the section of the AFC who manage womens football in Asia. The group was founded in April 1968 in a meeting involving Taiwan, Hong Kong, Malaysia. In 1986 the ALFC merged with the AFC, the Asian Ladies Football Confederation helped organise the AFC Womens Asian Cup, first held in 1975, as well as the AFCs AFC U-19 Womens Championship and the AFC U-17 Womens Championship. The AFC has 47 member associations split into five regions, all three competitions are held every four years. The top-ranked AFC competition is the AFC Champions League, which started in the 2002–03 season and gathers the top 1–4 teams of each country, a second, lower-ranked competition is the AFC Cup. This competition was launched by AFC in 2004, a third competition, the AFC Presidents Cup, which had started in 2005, was absorbed into the AFC Cup in 2015. The AFC also runs an annual Asian futsal club competition, the AFC Futsal Club Championship

13.
Football in Afghanistan
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Football is one of two most popular sports in Afghanistan. Formed in 1922 and affiliated to FIFA since 1948, the Afghanistan Football Federation, Afghanistan took part in the 1948 Summer Olympics, playing just once in a 6-0 defeat to Luxembourg. The Afghans also appeared twice at the Asian Games, Afghanistan did not play a competitive international match from 1984 until 2002, when it competed at the Asian Games in Busan, South Korea. In March 2003, the nation recorded its first victory in almost 20 years when it beat Kyrgyzstan 2-1 in an Asian Cup qualifying match, sayed Tahir Shah and Farid Azami were the scorers on that day. The Afghanistan national football team played in Asian Cup qualifiers and in early 2003 celebrated its first victory. The team made it to the position in the 2011 SAFF Championship. However, in the 2013 SAFF Championship, the Afghan team won its first international football trophy after playing against India. The first football games to be played in Afghanistan were played between 4 school teams back in 1923, these four teams were Maktab Habibiyeh, Maktab Esteghlal, Tafrih Team, the first Afghan football club was Mahmoudiyeh F. C. which was founded in 1934. The team traveled to India three years later and took part in 18 games of which 8 were won,9 lost and 1 tied, ariana Kabul F. C. was established in 1941 and became the second Afghan football club. This team traveled to Tehran upon invitation from Iran, played 3 games in which 1 was won and 2 were lost, in the same year the Afghanistan national football team was formed when it played the national football team of Iran in a 0-0 draw for first international game. Afghanistan did not play an international match from 1984 until 2002. The results were 10-0 to Iran, 11-0 against Qatar and 11-0 to Lebanon, the nation recorded its first victory in almost 20 years in March 2003 when they beat Kyrgyzstan 2-1 in an Asian Cup qualifying match. Sayeed Tahir Shah and Farid Azami were the scorers on that day and their results in the 8-nation South Asian Football Federation Cup were also respectable – losing to Sri Lanka and Pakistan 1-0 and India 4-0. Although it did not play in any games from 1984 to 2003 due to internal conflicts. In 2007, the Afghanistan womens national team was created. It is directed by the Afghan Sports Federation or the Afghanistan Olympic Committee, during the 2011 SAFF Championship, the Afghan team marked its first win over Nepal and made it to the runners-up position but failed to win the trophy from five-times-champion India. On 20 August 2013, Afghanistan defeated Pakistan in a football match that was held at the Afghan Football Federation stadium in Kabul. The following month, during the 2013 SAFF Championship, Afghanistan beat six-times-champion India, Afghans celebrated their victory all across the country

14.
Australian soccer league system
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The Australian soccer league system is a structure of leagues for soccer clubs in Australia. The league system in Australia since 1977 has involved one top divisional league controlled by the national body, the National Soccer League stood from 1977–2004 as the top nationwide tier above the current state-based league systems, in 2005, the A-League was established as its successor. The introduction of the National Premier Leagues in 2013 introduced a second tier of football in Australia. The National Premier Leagues incorporated the state leagues as divisions with a nationwide end of season finals series. In 2013, the National Premier Leagues rebranded 5 of the 9 top state leagues, there is no promotion and relegation to and from the top-tier A-League, and promotion and relegation at other levels varies between different state systems. The National Youth League, which runs in conjunction with the A-League as a youth developmental. The womens soccer league system in Australia is similar to that of the mens, with the W-League the top nationwide league, note, tiers below the National Premier League are not official or coordinated League system, for a list of similar systems in other countries General

15.
Football in Bahrain
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The sport of football in the country of Bahrain is run by the Bahrain Football Association, and is by far, the most popular sport in the country. Bahrain has its own top-tier domestic professional league, the Bahraini Premier League. It features 10 football clubs play a two round robin set, with each team playing a total of 18 fixtures. The winners of the domestic championship qualify for the AFC Cup, the league uses a promotion and relegation system with the Bahraini Classification League, Bahrains second tier football league. The season usually starts in September and concludes in May, as in football leagues. The first season was held in 1952, although games are played on a home and away basis, almost all games are played at the Bahrain National Stadium. The bottom placed club is relegated with the team finishing second bottom entering a relegation/promotion playoff match, the most successful club in the leagues history is Al-Muharraq SC. The current reigning champion of the 2011-2012 football season is Riffa club, sport in Bahrain Bahrain national football team

16.
Football in Bangladesh
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Throughout history, football has been the most popular sport in Bangladesh and is governed by the Bangladesh Football Federation. Compared to the past, the standard of Bangladeshi football has degraded due to mismanagement, lack of support, an interest in cricket resulting from the nation’s success in Test Cricket and participation in the Cricket World Cup overshadowed the past fame in the nation’s football. But however this did not affect football’s popularity, more football tournaments are organized in and outside Dhaka than of any other sports and football fever grips the nation during every FIFA World Cup. Federation officials and experts are still hopeful about the development of football in the country in the ten years despite financial obstacles. History tells us why football is popular in the country. During the liberation war in 1971, football was the way to international awareness about the war of independence. The Swadhin Bangla Football Team was established which played 16 matches in India and was received by the BFF in 2009. The period before the 1990s saw national soccer fever in league football, specifically in the Dhaka League, League football was popular even before independence, from the 1940s to 1960s under Pakistan. A match between East Pakistan Governors XI vs, west Bengal XI was held at Dhaka in the late forties. The first Dhaka League was won by Bangladeshi Victoria SC in 1948, Dhaka League was very prestigious in the South-Asia and Asia itself. Many of Dhaka league teams went on to become among the most successful teams in the Asian continent, the league also went as far as having players from top European teams. Football was played both in the leagues and abroad. Bangladeshi clubs such as BKSP and Bangladesh Red played with success in football tournaments like Aga Khan Gold Cup, President Gold Cup, Dana Cup. BKSP won the two in 1990 while Bangladesh Red were runners-up in the first President Gold Cup in 1981. Bangladesh’s best player of all time is Kazi Salahuddin, who played football in Hong Kong in 1979. After the establishment of BFF in 1972, the team played their first international match against Thailand in the 1973 Merdeka tournament in Malaysia. After its membership with FIFA in 1974 and the Asian Football Confederation, the team participated in the 1980 AFC Asian Cup. But the nation’s best results came at South Asian level where it won the SAFF Championship once and were gold medalists in South Asian Games twice,6 September 2011 was the most unforgettable moment of Bangladeshi football

17.
Chinese football league system
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The league system is separated below this point with no promotion or relegation for the semi-professional and amateur teams. The hierarchical system continues and levels have progressively more parallel divisions, the highest level of football in China is the Chinese Super League which was founded in 2004. The China League One and China League Two are currently the second and third divisions. The two worst teams from the Chinese Super League are replaced by the two best teams from the China League One at the end of each season, the China League Two is conducted in two groups of 13 teams with the season culminating in a play-off. The finalists in the play-off replace the two worst teams in the China League Two, teams may be relegated from the China League Two despite it being the lowest level professional league. The China Amateur League is a football league that includes 44 regional leagues. Teams in this league may be promoted if they meet the criteria for entrance to League Two, Chinese Football Association China League History

18.
Timorense football league system
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The Timorense football league system, also known as the football pyramid, is a series of interconnected leagues for association football clubs in Timor-Leste. The competition called Campeonato Nacional de Timor divided into three division, the competition was part of Perserikatan until 1994 and to be part of Liga Indonesia Second Division zone qualification since 1995 to 1999. At the top is the division of the Super Liga, containing 8 clubs and best 4 clubs from Liga Pre, all of which. Below the Super Liga is Timorense Liga Pre, which is divided two groups of 4-5 clubs each, Liga Pre Group 1 and Liga Pre Group 2. The third tier is the Taça Digicel, containing 14 clubs, in 2015 FFTL officially launched the national amateur league labelled Liga Futebol Amadora. Designed to allow local footballers to flourish, the LFA will give a home to football in Timor Leste. Being members of a league at a level also affects eligibility for Cup, or single-elimination. Taça 12 de Novembro, Levels 1 and 2, with details 8 clubs Level 1,13 clubs Level 2, LFA Super Taça, Champions of Level 1 and winner of cup competition. Primeira Divisão, The Bottom two teams are relegated, segunda Divisão, The champions and runner-up are promoted

19.
Football in Hong Kong
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Tracing back to early 20th century, the football league in Hong Kong is probably the oldest professional league in Asia. While most records before the Second World War have been lost, hence, not many people can remember the old glory of Hong Kongs professional football. Professional league, Premier League Amateur leagues, First Division Second Division Third Division All the leagues are organised by the HKFA. FA Cup, Level 1-4 League Cup, Level 1 Community Shield, Level 1 Senior Shield, Level 1 Junior Challenge Shield, among them the HKFA Cup and Silver Shield are probably the oldest professional football competitions in Asia - even earlier than the league. South China Kitchee Happy Valley Sun Hei Eastern AA Hong Kong Football Club Instant Dict, seiko List of football clubs in Hong Kong HKFA official site - English version Hong Kong Football -

20.
Football in India
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Football is Indias second most popular sport, next to the game of cricket. Also contested is Santosh Trophy, a competition between states and government institutions. The current captain of the Indian national team is Gurpreet Singh Sandhu, India is currently ranked 129th among the FIFA World Rankings, published in January 2017. The 2017 FIFA U-17 World Cup is scheduled to take place in India, by virtue of being the host country, the Indian team will automatically play in the tournament. Depending on the performance of the U-17 team, the All India Football Federation has indicated consideration for a World Cup bid, the origin of football in India can be traced back to mid-nineteenth century when the game was introduced by British soldiers. Initially, games were played between army teams, however, clubs were soon set up around the country. Calcutta FC was the first club to be established in 1872, though reports suggest that they were initially a rugby club, other early clubs include Dalhousie Club, Traders Club and Naval Volunteers Club. Several other football clubs like Sovabazar, Mohun Bagan and Aryan Club were established in Calcutta around the 1890s, Calcutta, then capital of British India, soon became the hub of Indian football. Tournaments like Gladstone Cup, Trades Cup and Cooch Behar Cup was also started around this time, the Durand Cup and IFA Shield were both started in late nineteenth century. The first Indian team to success was Sovabazar Club, which won the Trades Cup in 1892. Mohun Bagan Athletic Club was set up in what is now West Bengal in 1889, the club became famous in 1911 when it became the first Indian team to lift the IFA Shield, a tournament previously won only by British teams based in India. It defeated the East Yorkshire Regiment 2–1 in the final of the tournament in a victory that is regarded by many as the greatest win by an Indian team before Independence. Later under RTI Act filed with Reg No PMOIN/R/2015/61395, the Government of India made it clear that Mohun Bagan Athletic Club is not the National Club of India. The Indian Football Association was established in Calcutta in 1893, the All India Football Federation, which runs the game in India, was formed in 1937, but took more than a decade to get affiliated with FIFA. India also insisted on playing barefoot when other nations were putting their boots on, India qualified by default for the 1950 FIFA World Cup as a result of the withdrawal of all of their scheduled opponents. But lack of exchange, the prospects of a long sea journey. Although FIFA imposed a rule banning barefoot play following 1948 Olympics where India had played barefoot, the team has never since come close to qualifying for the World Cup. India even picked up the gold in football in the first Asian Games in 1951, in 1956, after having put on its boots, India reached the semi-final in Melbourne Olympics football, the first Asian country to do so

21.
Indonesian football league system
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The Indonesian football league system is a series of league system for association football clubs in Indonesia. Since 1994, Liga Indonesia is the league competition featuring association football clubs, Liga Indonesia is managed by PSSI, the Indonesian national football federation. There are 5 levels of competition in the hierarchy, the top three in the hierarchy are professional and semi-professional competitions, whereas the rest are amateur. From 1914 to 1930, Indonesia featured a national football league organized by the Nederlandsch Indische Voetbal Bond. Beginning in 1931, the Perserikatan was founded as an amateur national football league system consisting of several levels of competition. It was the first Indonesian football league organized by PSSI. In 1979/80, a league was founded, namely Galatama. Therefore, since 1979, both Galatama and Perserikatan were existed and had their own league systems, in 1994, PSSI merged both competitions into a new competition system, namely the Liga Indonesia. All clubs from both top level leagues were merged into the Liga Indonesia Premier Division, the new systems top-flight league, furthermore, since Galatama did not have lower-level leagues, Liga Indonesias lower leagues took all clubs from the same level in Perserikatan. In 2008, PSSI created a new level, the Indonesia Super League, hence, the Premier Division was then relegated to the second and so on. This new league was created to introduce professionalism in Indonesian football. In parallel with this league, U-21 teams from each participating ISL clubs compete in the ISL U-21, in 2011, PSSI replaced the ISL with the Indonesian Premier League. After the extraordinary congress on 17 March 2013, Premier League, before that the two leagues still running, respectively. In 2014, PSSI divided into four level leagues competition include Super League, Premier Division, First Division, started in 2015 league planned just divided into three level leagues competition include Super League, Premier Division and Liga Nusantara, after first division mergered with liga nusantara. In 20 January 2017, PSSI announced to replace three previous league with three new leagues, namely the Liga 1, Liga 2 and Liga 3, from the 1994-1995 to 2004-2005 season, Liga Indonesias structure changed almost every year. For some seasons, there were two divisions within the top flight, for others, there were three, the number of clubs in the top flight wavered from 18-28, and seasons would last from 34-38 games. The top four clubs in each division qualified for a group stage Final Eight Championship Playoff, winners of the group faced off for the championship. During the 2004-2005 season,18 clubs comprised the Indonesian top flight, a season lasted 34 games, in which each club played against each other on a home-and-away basis

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Iranian football league system
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The Iranian football league system is a series of interconnected leagues for football clubs in Iran. The current structure has been in place since 2001, the Iran Premier League is the highest level of club football in Iran. It is also called the Persian Gulf Cup, below it is the Azadegan League, also known as the 1st division, which consists of one twenty-team group. One level further down from that is the 2nd division which is made up of 40 teams evenly distributed into four groups, one step down, and the final nationwide league, is the 3rd division. This level has five groups and 60 teams, each groups contains teams that are located in the same area of the nation. The final level of the system consists of 31 provincial leagues. Local teams from each province participate in leagues, and some of the leagues are divided into further divisions. The system works with a system, meaning that a team from the lowest level of the system can make it to the top level after a number of years. The number of teams in each league often changes from season to season, currently the IPL is the only league that is considered professional, despite many of its rules about club facilities and management being broken. It is not uncommon for teams in the levels of the system to change team names because of sponsorship issues or for teams to completely withdraw from a competition. The top four levels of the system are managed by the Iranian football federation, before the early 1970s Iran did not have an official national league. Most teams would participate in city championships, taj1 and Persepolis2 had become the two most popular teams in the mid 60s and continue to be in the present. Pas Tehran, Shahin, Taj, Daraei F. C. all won championships in the Tehran local league, in 1972, the Takht Jamshid Cup was created. It was designed to include teams from all over the country, the league was in place until the Iranian Revolution took place, and the 1978 season was left uncompleted. Due to the revolution and the Iran–Iraq War, football was no longer a priority, Clubs had very little money and due to political reasons team names, management and resources were changed. Tehran A won Qods league in 1985 and 1988, whereas Esfahan won it in 1986 and 1987, the most important competition in 80s is Tehran Clubs Cup. Persepolis F. C. has most championships in that cup. In 1989 and after the end of war, it was decided to change Qods league format so that it was played among clubs rather than provinces, thus the fifth Qods league, which was the last one, was played among 22 teams, in two groups of 11. This was the first National league after revolution, Esteghlal won this league by beating Perspolis 2-1 in the final match

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Japanese association football league system
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The Japanese association football league system is organized in a pyramidal shape similar to football league systems in many other countries around the world. The top three levels of the Japanese football league system are operated by the J. League, which consists of J1 League, J2 League, All of the clubs in the J. League are fully professional. The fourth level, the Japan Football League is a league consisting of amateur, professional. At the fifth and sixth levels, nine parallel regional leagues are operated by nine different regional football associations, the regional associations are divided by political or geographical boundaries. At the seventh level and below, parallel prefectural leagues are hosted by each of the 46 different prefectural football associations, J. Eighteen clubs make up the top flight and have access to the Asian premier football competition, AFC Champions League. Division 2 now has 22 clubs, after 2 new clubs were promoted into the system in 2012, All J. League clubs enter the Emperors Cup directly and receive a bye in the 1st round, but only the Division 1 clubs qualify for the J. League Cup. In the past, Division 1 teams started from the fourth round, nowadays, they all start from the second round due to the expansion of Division 2, this results in some eliminations of professional teams by regional teams in the early stages. Asian Qualification Currently, through the games, the J. League champions, runners-up. The other means of qualification is the Emperors Cup, however also gives clubs below level I the possibility of qualification. If one of the top three finishers also wins the Emperors Cup title, the 4th-placed club receives the final qualification spot, relegation Currently, the bottom three clubs are automatically relegated to J. League Division 2. Promotion There are three spots available to clubs in J2. The champions and runners-up receive automatic promotion, and the clubs finishing 3rd to 6th participate in playoffs for the promotion spot. To be promoted, a club is obliged to meet all the criteria required for membership of Division 1, relegation Up to two of the top J3 clubs may be promoted to J2 if they have a J. League Associate Membership. Subsequently, up to two of the bottom J2 clubs might be relegated to J3. Rules for promotion to J2 will be similar to those of Japan Football League in the recent seasons, to be promoted. The J-League U-22 team is not eligible for promotion regardless of their final position, the champions will be promoted directly, in exchange to 22nd-placed J2 club, and the runners-up will participate in the playoffs with 21st J2 club. If either or both top 2 finishers are ineligible for promotion, the playoffs and/or direct exchange will not be held in accordance to the positions of promotion-eligible clubs. The Japan Football League is the level in the Japanese football pyramid

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South Korean football league system
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The South Korean football league system contains two professional leagues, a semi-professional league and amateur leagues for Korean football clubs. The highest level of football in South Korea is the K League Classic which was founded in 1983, K League Challenge was founded in 2013 and is currently a second division. Below the level of the professional leagues is the semi-professional National League, the amateur K3 League, which is being considered the fourth division, was added to the setup in 2007. National League and K3 League are called the division and the fourth division for convenience. There was no avenue for progression between any of the leagues until 2012, when the K League Challenge was founded, Korea Semi-Professional Football League was a semi-professional football league between corporate teams in South Korea from 1964 to 2002. K League Challenge was created in 2013, fourth tier K3 League was founded in 2007, and renamed to K3 League Advanced. Fifth tier K3 League Basic was founded in 2017, the K League was created in 1983 and remained the only officially organized league competition in the country until the creation of the National League in 2003. The K3 League was created in 2007, and divided into two leagues starting from 2017, * As of 2017 season Below this league structure there are many amateur, university and youth level competitions at varying levels. From 2008, the U-League, a competition for university football clubs. All K League and National League sides qualify for the Korean FA Cup tournament, the top four sides from the Challengers League gained qualification to the next seasons FA Cup tournament. Additional qualifiers come from amateur and university level, the League Cup competition is open to K League teams only, whilst sides from the National League can compete in the National Championship. From 2011, Challengers Cup competition is open to Challengers League teams, at present, four South Korean sides qualify automatically for the AFC Champions League. Three top teams from K League Classic automatically gains entry to the AFC Champions League, the Korean FA Cup winners also qualify for the AFC Champions League only. However, if the champions of Korean FA Cup are not members of K League, the fourth place of K League Classic the entry. com website

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Football in Kuwait
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Football is the most popular sport in Kuwait. The Kuwait Football Association is headquartered in Udailiya, Al-Ittihad Street, the Kuwait Football Association was founded in 1952

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Myanmar Football Federation
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The Myanmar Football Federation is the governing body of football in Myanmar. The MFF oversees the Burmese mens national team, the national team. Reportedly introduced during the British colonial era by James George Scott, the Burma Football Federation was founded in 1947, a year before the countrys independence from the United Kingdom. The BFF joined FIFA in 1952, and the AFC in 1954, the federation launched the first States and Divisions Football Championship in 1952. The highly popular annual competition became the venue from which to draw out talented players from around the country. This rudimentary level of talent development seemed sufficient for a while, during a ten-year span between 1961 and 1970, Burma thoroughly dominated the U-19/U-20 Asian Cup, reaching the finals nine times and winning the tournament seven times. Starting from the mid-1970s, the countrys football success—a source of much national pride—also declined rapidly, the federation did little to promote development of football, or nurture the talent through professional league competitions. Until 1996, the main football league consisted of Yangon-based clubs run by government ministries. Although private football clubs were allowed to join the Myanmar Premier League in 1996, in December 2008, the MFF announced the formation a new national professional league, Myanmar National League, which will start its first full season in 2010. In accordance with FIFA regulations, the MFF reportedly became an independent organization, free of government control, in March 2009

A hierarchy (from the Greek hierarchia, "rule of a high priest", from hierarkhes, "leader of sacred rites") is an …

Matryoshka dolls, also known as nesting dolls or Russian dolls. Each doll is encompassed inside another until the smallest one is reached. This is the concept of nesting. When the concept is applied to sets, the resulting ordering is a nested hierarchy.

Career-oriented purposes can be diagrammed using a hierarchy describing how less important actions support a larger goal.